Halladay Starting Saturday – But Should He?

Much has been made about the Phillies decision to allow Roy Halladay to start on Saturday in Miami. It’ll be his last trip to the hill this season, and with the Phillies out of the playoff chase, many are wondering if it’s even worth it.

The answer isn’t just an easy yes or no. While it’s understandable to assume it’s better for the Phillies to “save some bullets” and sit Doc down for this one start, he would end up going down with a fight anyway. However, shutting him down would allow him to coast into the offseason, focusing on getting himself right for 2013. Many are calling for the Phillies brass to make the executive decision to just say no. That hasn’t, and as of now, will not happen.

Really, I’m not sure it matters. One six inning start isn’t going to kill the guy. We all know what kind of competitor Halladay is, so he wants to finish a disappointing season on a high note. You can’t fault him for that. It’s likely the Phillies conferred with doctors and trainers, who deemed Halladay fine to pitch one last time. He had a back/upper shoulder spasm before his last start, which caused him to be about as bad as Halladay can be. But, it sounds like everything is sound in the shoulder region. Don’t you think they would be all over him if it wasn’t?

I’m sure he’s thinking if he’s well enough to pitch, then he should. And we should commend him for wanting to put together one last Doc-like performance before the long winter shuts him down.

Count me as one not too worried about this final start. Would I rather him not make it? Probably. But to be up in arms about it is ridiculous. Halladay has five months to rest his troublesome shoulder, so allowing him to finish the season on his own terms is fine by me.